Litter vac is coming soon
By Barbara Arntsen
Published in News on August 23, 2004 1:55 PM
Getting that trash vacuumed up from the sides of city streets is still a few weeks away, but the machine that will do the job has arrived.
Joseph Sawyer, city general services manager, said the litter vacuum was delivered a couple of weeks ago, but that some modifications had to be made before it could be used.
A Virginia company modified a self-propelled leaf vacuum machine to be able to vacuum up litter. It cost the city $14,000.
The machine is attached to an enclosed dump truck. The litter vacuum has an extended boom so it can reach up to 25 feet from the side of the street to collect litter and trash. A test was first conducted by the General Services Department to see if the new vacuum machine could suck up the trash efficiently and economically.
"The boom was still a little long," he said. "It was a little difficult to maneuver."
Sawyer said that the changes needed to the boom could be done by his staff. "We're working on it now. And we hope to have it ready within the next two weeks."